best to be read in dark mode. any font style and size works!

I edited the ending of the last chapter. so please
check that out first before reading this chapter! :))

Also, STAY HERE by GAHO is the main theme song for #SooNi :)

If you're going to listen to the song, I advise for
you to read the English translation while doing so.

" Even if everything's gone,

I'll search for you again

I'll grab on tight

To that time that won't come again

I need you... "

- Stay Here by Gaho

- Park Soobin's POV

How did I forget you?

I stared at her face one last time before pulling her into my arms. Keni squeaked in surprised, making me chuckle to myself. The connection started to die down, but it was still there. Then I felt Keni push me away and for a second I was confused as to why she did that. But when I saw her expression and the look in her eyes, I knew that something was wrong.

"Keni, what's wrong?" I asked, getting a little worried as I saw how cloudy her eyes looked.

"Sorry, but whatever this is... It's a little overwhelming for me," She answered while avoiding my eyes.

This is not like her... Why is she suddenly avoiding me?

I crossed my eyebrows in even more confusion and placed my hands on top of her shoulders. I quickly tapped into the connection between me and Keni and felt something that wasn't there before. A huge gap.

"Keni, did something happened yesterday? Today?"

"Um, no. But I fainted earlier and..."

She fainted? Just like me? Did the connection make her feel the pain, too?

Then Keni shook her head and looked behind me. I turned around to see what she was looking at but I didn't see anything. Then I looked back at Keni and saw her sighing to herself.

"Okay, seriously, Keni, what happened? Something must have happened for you to act-"

"To act like what?" Keni cutted in, her curious side returning back.

Then I continued on, "To act so different from the Keni that I know."

She then gave me an apologetic look and said, "I'm sorry, Soobin-ssi."

Soobin-ssi?

"I just... Everything is too confusing for me right now. Could we maybe talk later?" She added in and had started to walk away to the doors.

But I grabbed her hand and pulled her back. 

"Talk later? Are you kidding me right now? Keni, did you hit your head or something?" I asked as I looked at her in desperation. "Why haven't you asked me about anything from last week? Don't tell me that you've forgotten what happened back at the corridor? I was pulled into a trap by Jisung! Please, Keni, remember..."

"Ji-jisung oppa?" Keni spoke up as she looked so confused. "Why would he pull you into a trap? Jisung isn't that kind of person?"

Then realization hit me.

The cloudy-look in her eyes. The way she talked to me. The fact that she hasn't asked me about last week's event.

"Did someone manipulate your memories... of me? Of us?" I asked as I let her hand go.

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- Lee Keni's POV

Everything was crashing down on me. I wasn't ready for this. I wasn't ready to know. Whatever had happened to me recently was giving me a headache. I needed to get out of the office, but Soobin just had to pull me back. I wanted to continue the conversation later on, but when Soobin asked me about my memories being manipulated, I had then remembered what Headmistress Lee told me about his memories could have possibly been manipulated too.

Did the same thing happen to me as well?

"I... I do not know, Soobin..." I whispered back as I looked at him.

Then I felt it again. The warm feeling or whatever it was called. It was trying to tell me something but the pain that I was getting in my head was distracting me. Then the room started to spin out of control as I heard voices in my head. The voices were too soft for me to actually listen and understand. I see Soobin looking at me in worry while asking me if I was okay, but I couldn't reply back. Then I felt something pull me backwards.

I shut my eyes and suddenly heard Yeji's voice.

"Keni, open your eyes." And I did.

Then my eyes went wide when I saw Song Yeji standing in front of me. Right behind her was Soobin who was frantically looking around the office and shouting my name. Then I looked back at Yeji and asked, "What just happened? Why can't Soobin see me?"

"Oh, Keni... You have no idea how long I've been waiting for you to get here!" Yeji exclaimed as she gave me a hug.

I felt her skin, but it wasn't humane nor was it like a Vampires or Guardians. It was... death.

"You're so cold, unnie," I spoke up as she pulled away.

I earned a small laugh from the older girl and then she replied back, "I can't really feel my skin or anything in the Spirit Realm since... Well, since I'm dead."

"S-spirit Realm?" I gasped in shock.

Then I looked around and noticed that the furniture in Headmistress Lee's office were all floating in the air. The books on the bookshelves were literally moving by themselves and the once blue sky outside the floor-length mirror was no longer there. In its place was just total whiteness.

"I've made it," I whispered as I finally took it all in. "I've finally channeled myself in the Spirit Realm."

ততততততততততততততততততততত

"So, wait, that was you?" I asked after Yeji had told me that she was the one who turned the light on from the lamp on Headmistress Lee's wooden desk.

Yeji stifled a laugh while nodding her head. Then I slapped her arm and exclaimed, "YAH! UNNIE! YOU FREAKED ME OUT!"

"Oops! I'm sorry, Keni," she replied back. "But I wanted to see if my spirit form can touch objects in the Living World."

"Oh, you mean like that movie called Ghost?" I joked earning a playful eye roll from the late Guardian.

Then the air around us started to become serious when we both saw Headmistress Lee walking back inside her office with a worried expression. I heard Yeji sighing beside me as we watched her and Soobin talk.

"So they can't see me?" I asked while walking over to them, Yeji following right behind me.

"That's right," Yeji answered. "Just like how no one can see me."

"But I can see you, silly. I saw you last week at the sleepover."

"Well, that's because it was raining and you're the Keeper of Souls," Yeji explained.

Then I made a weird noise at the mention of the formal name of my Gift, and said, "You mean Seeker, unnie. I swear, the name Keeper of Soul is such a mouthful."

It was Yeji's turn to slap my arm and damn it hurts. I muttered an 'ow' and glared at the older girl. Then Yeji whispered, "Keni... There are so many things that I've been planning to tell you before I died. But it looks like I won't be able to tell all of it to you."

I gave her a confused look and asked, "What do you mean by that, unnie?"

Then Yeji just smiled at me and answered, "Time will tell, and when it does, I hope you're ready." And then she disappeared.

"WAIT! YEJI UN-" I was cut off when I felt the familiar warmth of the office. Then I saw Soobin and Headmistress Lee looked at me in shock.

"Keni... How did you..." Soobin couldn't believe what he saw.

Who would? I just reappeared right in front of him after disappearing into thin air.

Then Headmistress Lee spoke up, "Keni, do you have something to tell me?"

I looked at her and bit my bottom lip while thinking in defeat, "Looks like I have to tell her the whole truth."

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- Author-nim's POV

Someone should give Keni an award for keeping her Gift a secret for two months now. Headmistress Lee may have already known that Keni was different after reading Yeji's letter for Keni, but she had no idea that Keni was a powerful being.

"You can see and talk to spirits, you can also channel energy from the Spirit Realm, and enter the other world?" The middle-aged woman asked after hearing Keni's story about her and Yeji's first encounter and how Yeji had taught Keni to control her Gift.

Soobin was just as surprised as the Headmistress, but he understood right away and accepted Keni without judging her. It must have been his feelings for her or the Soulmate Connection. But either one of the two, he has never found anything more beautiful and stronger than the girl in front of him.

Keni nodded her head slowly and said, "I'm sorry for keeping this from you, Headmistress Lee. I really am.... But Yeji unnie told me to not tell anyone just yet."

Headmistress Lee sighed. "Well, Yeji was right. But I still... I still couldn't believe that I didn't see this... I never saw you with a Gift in my visions, Keni. Not once."

The two 18-year-olds then looked at each other and wondered about the same thing.

Why?

ততততততততততততততততততততত

Soobin opened the door for Keni as they left the office together. Keni's headache had once again come back but this time it was bearable. Right after Soobin had shut the door behind them, he looked back at his Soulmate and smiled to himself.

"This time, I won't let anyone get in our way in being together," he thought to himself as he followed Keni down the corridor.

But then Keni stopped walking and turned around to face him. She had a serious look in her cloudy eyes which made Soobin shiver. Then she spoke up, "Soobin, can we be friends?"

The Vampire stared at her in shock, confusion, and pain.

"W-what? Why, Keni? Is there something wrong?" Soobin asked, his voice cracked at the start of his sentence.

Then Keni shook her head. "Nothing's wrong," she answered softly. "I just... I have something to do before... before whatever it is that we have. I just want to stay true to you if we really are Soulmates. So, please, for me, Soobin... Can we be friends just for a little while?"

Keni hated to ask such a question, but she had to do it.

While explaining to Headmistress Lee and Soobin about her being a Seeker or Keeper of the Soul, she had been thinking about Soobin's question about her memories possibly being manipulated, and the only person who she knows who has that kind of power was none other than her Vampire, Oh Jisung.

Soobin was breaking once again, but he trusts Keni. Even if she is different from the Keni he knew, he still trusts her.

"Okay, we can," he answered, making Keni sigh in relief.

"Thanks, Soo-" but she was cut off when Soobin hugged her again.

"But please after whatever you're trying to do... Please, come back to me," Soobin whispered as he tightened his arms around her, but not too tight for a bruise.

Then Keni felt it. She felt his emotions and almost cried in his arms.

"Don't worry, Binnie," she whispered back, surprising herself and Soobin with the nickname.

Then she added in, "I'll come back... with the memories of us."

And just like how many would fail and hit rock bottom...

The two Soulmates ended up back at the beginning.

A/n:

So, um, first of all... #SooNi was meant to "fall in love" in PART 2, but I ended up making them have feelings for each other in PART 1 all because of the whole Soul Mate situation. But now that Keni has two different memories of her and Soobin and Jisung, she is quite confused to whom she has feelings for. 😅

We can now start expecting the 5 main characters for PART 2! I've had it planned out when I was writing chapters 4 to 5– 😆😆😆

#ScoobyDooGang of V Academy will be introduced real soon!

Also, what exactly happened to Soobin? Why didn't he remember his stunt in the Dining Hall that day? And did it really happen? Or was it Keni's mind playing tricks on her? 😉